Emotions / B2

opt-i-MIST-ik/ˌɒptɪˈmɪstɪk/

Optimistic means expecting a good outcome: cautiously optimistic, optimistic about, an optimistic forecast. Hopeful is everyday; sanguine is rarer and more literary; pessimistic is the opposite. Optimism is the noun. In speech, hopeful is enough. Do not call a guaranteed result optimistic — optimism is about belief, not proof — and do not confuse it with optional.

Meaning

Believing that good things will happen, or that a situation will improve.

Examples

• “Analysts are cautiously optimistic about next year’s growth.”
• “Analysts are cautiously optimistic, which still means the risk is real.”
• “An optimistic timetable left no slack for the inquiry’s extra witnesses.”

Good to know

optimistic about; cautiously optimistic. Noun: optimism. Everyday: hopeful. Opposite: pessimistic. Belief, not proof. Mix-up: optional.

Near in meaning

hopeful

Topics

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